In the construction of large structures, temporary supports are often placed to allow workers and materials to be brought in close proximity with work being done on the structure. In many construction scenarios, the work to be done is located in elevated areas. As a result temporary support structures or scaffolds are often built to assist workers and otherwise create temporary platforms on which to stand or hold building materials, tools, etc. Many large structures being built or requiring repair, etc. also require the placement of temporary exposed beams that span or be suspended over otherwise “open” areas. During construction or repair of the structure workers may traverse the exposed beams to assemble structure parts, install fixtures, etc. To prevent falls and injury, workers may be harnessed to a secure part of the structure, or to the scaffolding. Alternatively the scaffolding could be built up around the large structure so the worker would not need to walk across the exposed beams over the open areas. However, scaffolding may be cost or size prohibitive.
To prevent workers from walking on exposed beams in a dangerous fashion, temporary floor panels may be positioned across the exposed beams. However, such floor panels may be unwieldy and/or difficult to deploy and position, and then remove when the construction is complete. For example, each floor panel may weigh in excess of 45 pounds (e.g. a plywood sheet), which must then be raised to the beams and positioned on the beams and then removed and lowered from the beams.
Automated machinery has been proposed to position the flooring and reduce the risk of injury to workers. However, the acquisition and use of such machinery is costly, and the machinery otherwise takes up significant space. Further, it may not be possible to orient such machinery depending on the structure being fabricated. Improved methods and apparatuses for deploying and removing temporary flooring would be advantageous.